Thermal Management Technology Patent Landscape 2026
Thermal Management Technology Patent Landscape in 2026
The thermal management technology field is in a confirmed growth phase, with filings expanding roughly 60% over the recent multi-year window and the United States holding the leading filing office. The competitive structure is moderately concentrated, with Chinese automotive thermal specialists anchoring the top tier alongside established Japanese and Korean automotive suppliers.
Sanhua entities lead a moderately concentrated field with automotive and HVAC emphasis
Zhejiang Sanhua Automotive Components Co Ltd holds the top position with 108 patent families, followed closely by affiliated entities Hangzhou Sanhua Research Institute Co Ltd at 87 and Zhejiang Sanhua Intelligent Controls Co Ltd at 80, making the Sanhua group collectively the dominant force in this landscape. Denso Corp ranks fourth at 70 patent families and Hanon Systems Co Ltd fifth at 63, rounding out an automotive-heavy top tier.
The top five filers together account for 18% of the hundred largest filers’ combined total, indicating moderate rather than extreme concentration. A meaningful tier gap separates the Sanhua cluster from the rest of the top twenty, where applicants range from roughly 30 to 59 patent families.
| # | Applicant | Patent families | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zhejiang Sanhua Automotive Components Co Ltd | 108 | |
| 2 | Hangzhou Sanhua Research Institute Co Ltd | 87 | |
| 3 | Zhejiang Sanhua Intelligent Controls Co Ltd | 80 | |
| 4 | Denso Corp | 70 | |
| 5 | Hanon Systems Co Ltd | 63 | |
| 6 | FMC Technologies Inc | 59 | |
| 7 | BYD Co Ltd | 58 | |
| 8 | The Chemours Company FC LLC | 57 | |
| 9 | Sino-Brook New Energy Tech (Shanghai) Co Ltd | 49 | |
| 10 | Thermal Corp | 45 |
| # | Applicant | Patent families | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | Deka Products LP | 43 | |
| 12 | Anhui Welling Auto Parts Co Ltd | 41 | |
| 13 | Intel Corporation | 41 | |
| 14 | IBM Corporation | 37 | |
| 15 | Whirlpool Corporation | 35 | |
| 16 | Guangdong Welling Auto Parts Co Ltd | 34 | |
| 17 | Nortek Air Solutions Canada Inc | 32 | |
| 18 | OVH | 31 | |
| 19 | TYCO FIRE & SECURITY GMBH | 30 | |
| 20 | Astronautics Corporation of America | 28 |
The leaders’ positions imply deep integration across refrigerant-cycle design, vehicle HVAC, and heat-exchanger hardware. Entrants challenging the top tier must address all three sub-domains simultaneously or accept a narrower niche position, particularly in the lower-volume branches where coverage is thinner.
The most recent 18–24 months of filings are likely under-counted due to standard patent publication lag; growth figures for 2025 and 2026 should be treated as provisional. Longer-window growth, applicant concentration, and technology-route coverage are therefore more reliable signals than the latest-year bar alone.
Sustained filing growth driven by automotive electrification and HVAC system complexity
Two charts together reveal a field expanding on a multi-year basis, anchored by refrigeration and heat-exchange hardware, with secondary clusters in electronics cooling and vehicle electrification.
Annual filing trend
Annual filings rose steadily from 175 in 2017 to a recorded high of 566 in 2024, representing roughly 60% growth over the recent multi-year window. The 2025 figure of 343 and the 2026 figure of 29 reflect publication lag rather than a real decline and should not be read as a reversal of the trend.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaTechnology composition
F25B (Refrigeration and heat pumps) and F28D (Heat-exchange apparatus) dominate the branch mix, signaling that core refrigerant-cycle and exchanger engineering remains the primary activity. Secondary branches — H05K (Printed circuits and assemblies), B60H (Vehicle heating and. A/C), F04D (Non-positive-displacement pumps), H01L (Semiconductor devices), and H01M (Batteries, cells and fuel cells) — reflect the field’s extension into electronics cooling and EV battery thermal management.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaHighly cited patent families surfaced by the query
Citation-heavy patent families returned by the query. Use this section as citation context, not as a curated list of the most topic-specific patents.
Heat management apparatus and heat management system
A heat management apparatus comprises a first heat exchange portion, a second heat exchange portion and a throttle unit, wherein the first heat exchange portion is used for exchanging heat between a refrigerant throttled by the throttle unit, and a cooling liquid; and a first wall of the first heat exchange portion and a second wall of the second heat… (excerpt from the patent abstract)
| # | Patent | Citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Devices using a medium having a high heat transfer… | 425 |
| 2 | Cooling air cooler for a gas turbofan engine | 339 |
| 3 | Packaging system for thermally controlling the tem… | 325 |
| 4 | Blood pump having a magnetically suspended rotor | 286 |
| 5 | Thermal energy storage and delivery system | 279 |
| 6 | Blood pump having a magnetically suspended rotor | 271 |
| 7 | Heat management system | 242 |
| 8 | Heat management system for aircraft | 225 |
Ranked by total forward citations. Citation counts favour older and broadly cited patent families, and broad or adjacent patents may appear when they match the search scope. Treat this section as citation context, not as a curated list of the most topic-specific patents. Some patent titles may be shown in their original, non-English language where an accurate translation could not be guaranteed.
What the competitive structure means for R&D investment decisions
Four structural dimensions — maturity, concentration, collaboration, and geography — each carry distinct implications for where new entrants or incumbents can build defensible positions.
Active growth phase with automotive electrification as the primary driver
The lifecycle evidence classifies this field as Growth, with annual filings still rising and a 60% increase recorded over the recent multi-year window. The peak recorded year is 2024, and the lifecycle evidence does not indicate the field has eased from that peak. R&D investment cycles here are rewarded with filing momentum, but technology lock-in by the Sanhua group in core refrigerant-cycle patents means differentiation requires sub-domain specificity.
Growth stageModerate concentration with a clear Sanhua cluster at the top
The top five filers hold 18% of the hundred largest filers’ combined output, a level that is meaningful but not insurmountable. The Sanhua affiliated entities collectively occupy three of the top five ranks, creating a cluster effect that is unusual and signals coordinated IP strategy across group companies. Challengers from Denso Corp and Hanon Systems Co Ltd occupy the next tier and maintain strong automotive HVAC coverage.
Moderate concentrationMinimal co-filing activity; ecosystem is largely siloed
The collaboration evidence identifies two co-filing pairs: Hangzhou Sanhua Research Institute Co Ltd with Beijing University of Chemical Technology, and BYD Co Ltd with Shenzhen BYD Auto Industry Co Ltd. Both pairings reflect intra-group or university-industry linkages rather than broad cross-industry consortia. The absence of wide collaborative networks suggests the field operates in siloed innovation tracks, which may present an opening for platform-level partnerships.
Low co-filingUS and China co-lead filings; Europe and PCT are secondary validation markets
The United States leads jurisdictional coverage, closely followed by China, indicating that applicants prioritize both markets for primary protection. Europe via EPO and WIPO PCT filings serve as the main international extension routes. India, Japan, Germany, Australia, and Canada form a secondary tier, while South Korea is notably lower despite major Korean applicants such as Hanon Systems Co Ltd operating in this space — suggesting possible gaps in Korean protection strategy that competitors could monitor.
US–China dual leadGo beyond the landscape: Eureka’s TRIZ Solution agent breaks down an R&D problem and returns patented concept solutions, each with a technical approach and cited patent & literature evidence.
| Applicant | Collaborator | Co-filings |
|---|---|---|
| Hangzhou Sanhua Research Institute Co Ltd | Beijing University of Chemical Technology | 1 |
| BYD Co Ltd | Shenzhen BYD Auto Industry Co Ltd | 1 |
Co-filing pairs, ranked by the number of jointly-filed patent families.
Sanhua entities dominate refrigerant-cycle routes; BYD and Sino-Brook emerge as fast movers
The top players divide into an established automotive-supplier tier anchored by Sanhua group companies and Denso Corp, and a fast-growing new-entrant tier led by BYD Co Ltd and Sino-Brook New Energy Tech (Shanghai) Co Ltd, both of which entered the top ten with no prior-period filings in scope.
Zhejiang Sanhua Automotive Components Co Ltd
The top-ranked applicant with 108 patent families, Zhejiang Sanhua Automotive Components Co Ltd concentrates heavily on F25B 41 (refrigeration and heat pumps) and B60H 1 (vehicle heating and A/C), with F28D 9 (heat-exchange apparatus) as a third pillar. Recent filing momentum shows a 29% decline versus the prior three-year period, suggesting the entity may be consolidating its portfolio rather than expanding breadth. Its affiliated entity Zhejiang Sanhua Intelligent Controls Co Ltd, by contrast, posted a 153% surge in recent filings, indicating the group is shifting activity internally.
patent families: 108BYD Co Ltd
BYD Co Ltd ranks seventh with 58 patent families and is classified as a new entrant in the recent filing window, with 48 recent patent families — the highest recent-period count among all tracked applicants — indicating a very rapid build-up from a small prior base. Its technology emphasis spans F25B 41 (refrigeration and heat pumps), F16K 1 (valves and taps), and B60H 1 (vehicle heating and A/C), reflecting a vertically integrated EV thermal architecture strategy. This trajectory makes BYD Co Ltd the highest-velocity challenger to monitor.
patent families: 58| Applicant | Recent (3 yrs) | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| Hangzhou Sanhua Research Institute Co Ltd | 21 | ▼ -47% |
| Zhejiang Sanhua Automotive Components Co Ltd | 30 | ▼ -29% |
| Denso Corp | 6 | ▼ -45% |
| Hanon Systems Co Ltd | 20 | ▼ -31% |
| Zhejiang Sanhua Intelligent Controls Co Ltd | 38 | ▲ +153% |
| BYD Co Ltd | 48 | ▲ new entrant |
| The Chemours Company FC LLC | 11 | ▲ new entrant |
| Sino-Brook New Energy Tech (Shanghai) Co Ltd | 47 | ▲ new entrant |
Under-served branches adjacent to the dominant refrigerant-cycle core
The whitespace analysis identifies five lower-share IPC branches adjacent to the F25B and F28D core. Two of these stand out for their combination of relative sparsity, plausible technical value, and realistic entry paths for organizations already active in thermal management.
H05K · Printed circuits and assemblies (electronics cooling)
This branch holds a smaller share of the corpus relative to the dominant F25B and F28D classes, despite the rapid growth of data-center and EV power-electronics cooling demand. Applicants such as Thermal Corp (which focuses on F28D 15 and H05K 7) show that the bridge between thermal hardware and electronics packaging is viable. An entrant with heat-exchanger manufacturing capability could extend into substrate-level thermal interface and cold-plate designs with relatively contained freedom-to-operate risk in this sub-space.
Search this in Eureka →H01M · Batteries, cells and fuel cells (battery thermal management)
H01M appears as a lower-share branch despite battery thermal management being a widely cited commercial priority. BYD Co Ltd’s new-entrant status and 48 recent patent families signal that this sub-domain is beginning to fill rapidly. Organizations with existing cell chemistry or pack-design expertise have a narrowing but still present window to establish claims in battery-specific thermal architecture — particularly around phase-change integration and direct liquid cooling of cell arrays — before the space becomes as crowded as the refrigerant-cycle core.
Search this in Eureka →How leading applicants differ by technology route
Strength of each leader across the main technology routes.
| Player | F28D 15 · Heat-exchange apparatus | F25B 41 · Refrigeration & heat pumps | H05K 7 · Printed circuits & assemblies | B60H 1 · Vehicle heating & A/C | F25B 21 · Refrigeration & heat pumps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hangzhou Sanhua Research Institute Co Ltd | Absent | Strong · 67 | Absent | Strong · 47 | Absent |
| Hanon Systems Co Ltd | Absent | Strong · 42 | Absent | Strong · 54 | Absent |
| Zhejiang Sanhua Automotive Components Co Ltd | Absent | Strong · 49 | Absent | Strong · 34 | Absent |
| Thermal Corp | Strong · 41 | Absent | Strong · 36 | Absent | Absent |
| Denso Corp | Absent | Strong · 21 | Absent | Strong · 39 | Absent |
| BYD Co Ltd | Absent | Strong · 33 | Absent | Strong · 18 | Absent |
| Intel Corporation | Strong · 20 | Absent | Strong · 20 | Absent | Absent |
Frequently asked questions
The corpus covers 3,013 patent families globally. The United States leads as the primary filing jurisdiction, closely followed by China, with Europe via EPO and WIPO PCT serving as the main international extension routes.
Zhejiang Sanhua Automotive Components Co Ltd leads with 108 patent families, followed by affiliated entity Hangzhou Sanhua Research Institute Co Ltd at 87 and Zhejiang Sanhua Intelligent Controls Co Ltd at 80. The Sanhua group therefore collectively dominates the top three positions.
Yes. The lifecycle evidence classifies the field as Growth, with a 60% increase in filings over the recent multi-year window. The 2025 and 2026 filing counts appear lower due to publication lag and do not represent a real decline; the 2024 figure of 566 is the highest recorded annual count.
F25B (Refrigeration and heat pumps) and F28D (Heat-exchange apparatus) are the two dominant branches by patent-record count. Secondary branches with meaningful activity include F28F (heat-exchanger details), H05K (printed circuits and assemblies), B60H (vehicle heating and A/C), F04D (non-positive-displacement pumps), and H01L (semiconductor devices).
Among tracked applicants, BYD Co Ltd and Sino-Brook New Energy Tech (Shanghai) Co Ltd are both classified as new entrants with very high recent filing counts of 48 and 47 patent families respectively, indicating rapid build-up from a small prior base. Zhejiang Sanhua Intelligent Controls Co Ltd posted a 153% increase versus its prior three-year period, the strongest momentum among established filers.
Based on the whitespace analysis, H05K (printed circuits and assemblies, relevant to electronics cooling) and H01M (batteries, cells and fuel cells, relevant to battery thermal management) are lower-share branches relative to the dominant core, despite strong commercial demand signals in both areas. B60H (vehicle heating and A/C) and F04D (non-positive-displacement pumps) are also identified as adjacent branches worth monitoring.
Ready to map your own thermal management patent landscape?
Join 18,000+ innovators using PatSnap Eureka to map any technology landscape: search 2B+ patents and papers, surface key assignees, and generate a report like this in minutes.
Disclaimer. This page is generated from PatSnap Eureka data drawn from a limited snapshot of global patent and scientific-literature records, and is provided for general information and reference only.
Patent data carries inherent limitations: recent filings (typically the most recent 18–24 months) are under-counted due to standard publication lag; counts may be reported at either a patent-family or a patent-record basis and are not always directly comparable; classification, applicant-name, and citation data may contain errors, duplicates, or omissions; and the underlying search query defines and constrains the scope shown. As a result, the analysis may be incomplete or inaccurate and may not reflect the full technology landscape.
Nothing on this page constitutes an exhaustive prior-art, novelty, freedom-to-operate, or validity search, nor does it constitute legal, financial, investment, or professional advice, and it should not be relied upon as such. Any patent, commercial, or strategic decision should be verified independently and reviewed with qualified patent, legal, and domain professionals. PatSnap makes no warranties, express or implied, as to the accuracy, completeness, or fitness for any particular purpose of the information presented.